News In Brief 8 June 2005

Harris of Florida To Run For Senate
Says She's Not Worried, Knows How To 'Get The Votes'

Representative Katherine Harris, the former secretary of state of Florida and at the core of the 2000 presidential vote recount controversy, announced that she will be looking to unseat Senator Bill Nelson

Democrats accused Ms. Harris of engineering Bush's 2000 Presidential victory, as Bush won Florida by only 537 votes and, as Secretary of State, Ms. Harris presided over the recounts and certified the results. Ms. Harris had been a chairwoman of Mr. Bush's campaign in Florida

Ms. Harris said she will formally announce her candidacy in July.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee released a statement criticizing Ms. Harris's handling of the recount and suggesting that she was close to Representative Tom DeLay, the House majority leader, who is facing an investigation for possible ethics violations.

"As a public official, Katherine Harris is better known for generating controversies than for her achievements on behalf of the people she represents," said Phil Singer, communications director for the committee.


C.I.A Beefing Up Translator Recruitment

'Speaking The Language' Top Priority For New Hires

The Central Intelligence Agency, hampered by budget woes and the transitional elements of the new Homeland Security Department, announced that are beefing up their efforts in recruiting new translators.

Since the terrorist attacks in 2001, and the installation of the Patriot Act, droves of Arab-speaking candidates have been turned away, leaving the agency's intelligence gathering and reviews of intelligence reports lacking. Much of the work has fallen on long-time agency analysts who have limited language skills

"We want those that can speak the language", said Jennifer Millerwise, the top C.I.A. spokeswoman. "That would be a good first step".

Any changes made to the recruitment program, the final decision will be made by John D. Negroponte, who as the new director of national intelligence oversees the C.I.A. and 14 other agencies. The goal is to "leverage the cultural and linguistic skills"